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[ Source: San Francisco Chronicle, Nov. 18, 2008
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/18/BATK146S1Q.DTL&type=printable ]

Article:Santa Clara slaying suspect owns millions in property

Demian Bulwa, Chronicle Staff Writer

Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Brian Pugh, one of three employees of SiPort in Santa Cla... Marilyn Lewis, one of three employees of SiPort in Santa ... Sid Agrawal, one of three employees of SiPort in Santa Cl... Jing Hua Wu, 47, was fired Friday morning from his job at...

(11-18) 18:32 PST SANTA CLARA -- Jing Hua Wu, the engineer who police say fatally shot three executives at a Santa Clara startup company last week just hours after being fired, spent the last few years amassing a large portfolio of investment properties.

According to public records from eight counties in three states, Wu and his wife own at least 19 homes and vacant lots worth more than $2.4 million. One house in Arkansas, which is now being offered for rent by Wu, is in Hot Springs Village, the largest gated community in the nation. It has a screened porch with a golf course view.

But Wu, after his arrest in the Friday slayings of SiPort's chief executive, its human resources manager and its vice president of operations, told the Santa Clara County public defender's office that he could not afford a private attorney, officials said.

While refusing to discuss details, authorities said they are looking into whether Wu's financial situation had been affected by his foray into real estate before the nation's foreclosure crisis. A review of public records does not make clear how much equity the father of three from Mountain View has in the homes or how much debt he is carrying.

On Tuesday, Santa Clara County prosecutors reviewed the police evidence in the case but said they would hold off on filing charges until Wednesday. Wu, 47, is scheduled to be arraigned in court Wednesday afternoon in San Jose.

Wu declined a request for an interview from jail, and his wife did not return a message left with a woman at the couple's home.

Ken Mandel, one of two attorneys with the public defender's office who are representing Wu, declined to comment on the case.

Police said Wu was fired Friday morning from his job as a test engineer at SiPort, a semiconductor firm, then returned to the office on Scott Boulevard later in the day and killed chief executive Sid Agrawal, 56; human resources manager Marilyn Lewis, 67; and Brian Pugh, 47, vice president of operations.

Company officials said Wu had been fired for poor performance but declined to elaborate. He was arrested Saturday.

Records show that Wu and his wife, Jie Zheng Wu, went on a property-buying spree starting in 2004.

From June to October 2005, they bought two rental homes and five vacant lots for $526,000 in Hot Springs Village, a retirement community of nearly 15,000 people and nine golf courses. They took out at least $330,000 in bank loans to pay for the properties, records show.

The couple also bought at least five homes and six lots in Washington north of Portland, in the communities of Anderson Island, Vancouver and Ocean Shores. In California, they bought a modest home in Elk Grove and a bare lot near Lake Shastina in Siskiyou County.

There are few signs of financial strain in the records, and the couple paid property taxes on two Washington lots as recently as Nov. 7. The cost was $241.

Wu and his also wife sold a lot in Hot Springs Village in May of this year for $41,000 and sold a home in Washington for $225,000 last month.

In addition, one of the couple's homes in Hot Springs Village has been without a renter since September. A rental management company is asking $1,095 per month.

Dwight Turner, who with his wife owns the rental company, said property values have held firm in Hot Springs Village despite the national downturn. He said Wu, like a number of other out-of-state investors, had probably fared well.

"That didn't get him in trouble," Turner said.
Memorial plans

The families of three executives at the SiPort semiconductor firm who were shot and killed in their Santa Clara office Friday have announced plans for funeral services and memorial funds.

-- Sid Agrawal's funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at the Lima Family Milpitas-Fremont Mortuary, 48800 Warm Springs Blvd. in Fremont. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a memorial fund dedicated to causes important to Agrawal. Checks should be payable to "Ashish Agrawal (for Sid Agrawal Memorial Fund)," 47000 Warm Springs Blvd, No. 140, Fremont, CA 94539.

-- A memorial service for Marilyn Lewis will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday at Chapel of the Roses, Oak Hill Funeral Home and Memorial Park, 300 Curtner Ave. in San Jose. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in Lewis' memory to the Greater Bay Area Make-A-Wish Foundation, 235 Pine St., Sixth Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104.

-- A celebration of Brian Pugh's life will be held at 1 p.m. Friday at Los Altos United Methodist Church, 655 Magdalena Ave. in Los Altos.

-- SiPort has established a memorial fund for charitable causes identified by the families of Agrawal, Lewis and Pugh. Checks made payable to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, with "SiPort Memorial Fund" in the memo line, should be sent to 3255 Scott Blvd., Santa Clara, CA 95054.